Canadian Lawyer

FEATURE 34 www.lawtimesnews.com BRIEFS INSIDER LONDON LAWYER IN DOCUMENTARY TVO documentary "Prey" featured London, Ont. lawyer Rob Talach of Beckett Personal Injury Lawyers, who has filed 395 suits against the church. The Oct. 25 Ontario Court of Appeal decision upheld that abuse victim Roderick MacLeod receive an award unprecedented in Canadian case law on sexual abuse by religious figures, he says. MacLeod received $350,000 in general damages, $75,000 in aggravated damages, $56,400 in future treatment costs, a $1,588,781 lump sum for income loss and $500,000 in punitive damages. Talach says the documentary may be interesting to lawyers in the way the settlement and trial affected two of the sur- vivors. Even with the same lawyer, the two men show differences in personality and approach to the effects of abuse, he notes. NEW OCJ JUDGES The Ministry of the Attorney General an- nounced the appointment of two new justices to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective Nov. 14. Justice Lara Crawford will be a judge in Oshawa. Since 2010, she has overseen the provincial prosecutors in the Durham Region Crown Attorney's Office. Justice Marnie Vickerd will be a judge in Windsor. She has been a sole practitioner with a family law practice since 2003. BONIFERRO'S MAG TERM TO END Paul Boniferro,incum- bent deputy attorney general of Ontario, is ending, he announced. In a tweet dated Nov. 18, Boniferro said, "Today I announced I will be leaving my role as DAG at the end of my current term 01/03/20. What an honour & pleasure it has been to serve and to work with such excellent and talented public servants." JOHN STRUTHERS NAMED CLA PRESIDENT The Criminal Lawyers' Association has announced the election results for the members who will be serving in its 2019 to 2021 governing body. Toronto lawyer John Struthers was elected president. Daniel Brown, John Hale and Adam Weisberg were named vice presidents, while Cassandra DeMelo was named the women's vice president. GILLIAN HNATIW TO LEAD LEAF BOARD The Women's Legal Education and Action Fund has revealed its board of directors for 2019 to 2020, with 11 current members, headed by Gillian Hnatiw. Three new members have also joined the board — Shabnum Durrani, Breanne Lavallée-Heckert and Hadiya Roderique. Separately, Hnatiw won the Honsberger Award, which recognizes lawyers who personify the Toronto Lawyers Associ- ation's three pillars of knowledge, community and advocacy. PRATTE HONOURED BY OBA Guy Pratte accepted this year's Ontario Bar Association award of Excellence in Civil Litigation 2019 at a Nov. 21 event at Toronto's Ritz-Carlton. Pratte is a partner at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, recipient of the Law Society of Ontario Medal, a veteran of the Supreme Court and chairman of Pro Bono Ontario. —Photo by Shawn McPherson TLA AWARD GOES TO GREENSPAN The Toronto Lawyers Association named Brian Greenspan as the recipient of the 2020 TLA Award of Distinction. The award honours a Toronto lawyer "who has a demonstrated record of excellence, and who has made an extraordinary contribu- tion to the integrity and worth of the law and to the legal profession." TOP ADJUDICA- TORS, REGULATORS NAMED The Society of Ontario Adjudicators and Regulators has announced that Susan Opler and Eman- uela Heyninck are the recipients of its SOAR Medal for 2019. Opler has been the ombudsman of the City of Toronto since 2016. Heyninck has served as the head of the Pay Equity Commission for Ontario. DENTONS ADDS COUNSEL Mary Ellen Bench joined Dentons Canada LLP as counsel in Toronto. Prior to joining the firm, Bench was city solicitor of Mississauga and in senior in-house legal positions with the City of Toronto.

• Cover